


The Broad and The Cad

by flamehairedwritings



Category: The Mummy (1999)
Genre: F/M, I've wanted to write this for a while, Just A Short Lil Something
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-09
Updated: 2018-08-09
Packaged: 2019-06-24 03:27:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15621522
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flamehairedwritings/pseuds/flamehairedwritings
Summary: When the men find no sign of Imhotep, O’Connell returns to Evy’s room.





	The Broad and The Cad

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Please don’t copy, steal or repost my work; credit does not count.

* * *

 

 

“… Hateful, rude, selfish,  _arrogant_  man…”

The hateful, rude, selfish, arrogant man with which Evy Carnahan muttered about had half an hour ago swept her up, mid-protestation, carried her into her bedroom and dumped her unceremoniously onto the bed before slamming the doors shut and locking them, and every minute since then had felt like absolute torture.

“… Ooh, I can’t believe I let him… I can’t believe I  _wanted_  to…  _Ooh_ …”

Throwing her hair brush onto the dresser, Evy grit her teeth and crossed her arms over her chest as she continued to pace. 

The hateful, rude, selfish, arrogant man had also only days ago kissed her. The kiss had been… Well, it had been… Well, she had lied to herself; it  _had_  been  _that_  good of a kiss. It had been the most exciting kiss she’d ever had. Well, the only real, proper kiss she’d ever had.

And it had been from  _him_.

The no-good, ill-tempered, boorish Rick O’Connell.

Though that’s probably what had made it so exciting.

She could still feel his lips on hers, the firmness of them, the intensity. 

It made something flutter in her lower stomach.

_Oh, do pull yourself together, Carnahan, there are decidedly more pressing matters to think about right now._

Halting abruptly, she sank down onto the bed, her hands dropping into her lap.

Her clothes and books were still haphazardly strewn about from when O’Connell had tried to pack her things, and she’d been too irritated and restless to tidy. What was the point? He was probably going to barge in at any moment again and try to pack them all away. 

So, as a very firm gesture that she was absolutely, unequivocally, without a shadow of a doubt staying, she’d changed into her night gown, removed the pins from her hair and pulled the bedcovers back to climb in. 

Yet she’d been  _so_  restless that she’d just started to pace and brush her hair.

And mutter.

And wait. 

It was  _infuriating_. She’d been left behind like some useless damsel in distress while they all risked their lives and it made her blood boil.

“… let’s just point a gun at it and shoot until it goes away…” she continued in her mutterings, standing and resuming her pacing.

She couldn’t  _believe_  she had  _wanted_  to kiss such a…

“… Pig-headed, odious…  _American_ …”

 

 

* * *

 

_Go in, O’Connell. Just go in. You’re bigger, stronger, what can she do?_

_She can make you feel like a God damn idiot, that’s what she can do._

Rick O’Connell’s jaw clenched as he stared at the doors he’d locked earlier, readying himself for what, well, who lay behind them. 

He could already hear the earful he was going to get for man-handling her and making her stay behind. When he said he was going to check on her after leaving the guys at the bar, Jonathan had given him the most pitying of looks, and even Henderson, who’d only known her less than a week, had looked sympathetic when he’d relieved him of his guard duty.

_Just open the damn door and get it over with._

Rolling his shoulders, he removed the key from his pocket and slid it into the lock. Turning it sharply, he then placed his hands on the door handle and pushed the doors open.

Lifting his gaze, he was greeted by… A sight he certainly wasn’t expecting.

Evy was stood in the centre of the room, her arms folded, her gaze hard… 

And she was in a night gown.

And she was  _silent_.

He didn’t know what stunned him more.

Clearing his throat, he closed the doors behind himself and locked them before straightening his back.

“Evelyn─ ”

“You absolutely  _uncouth_ ,  _barbaric_ ,  _cad_ …”

_Ah, there it is._

“… How dare you lock me in here like some animal─“

“I had to to keep you safe, Evelyn─”

“And who put you in charge, hm?” Her hands were on her hips now, and it only made him stand straighter. “Who said you should be the one to decide what happens when you know absolutely nothing about─”

“I know that to keep you safe you can’t be out wandering the streets.” He stepped towards her, his initial plan of trying to gently reason with her in the hopes of softening her verbal blows already going completely out the window. “I know that if I didn’t keep you locked in here that creep would probably have you miles away by now, doing God knows what to get his─”

“No, you  _don’t_  know that, O’Connell,” she bit back, stepping forward herself to meet his challenge, “He’s a powerful being that’s only growing stronger, do you really think a locked door and  _you_  would keep him out?”    

His jaw clenched tightly as he now stood before her, staring down at her. “If it wasn’t for me, you would be dead by now, lady, you think everything’s so─“

“I’m warning you, O’Connell, if you─”

“You’re  _warning_  me?” he scoffed, his eyebrows shooting up. “ _Again_? You are the most infuriating─”

_“I’m_  the most infuriating─”

“Are you gonna let me get a damn word in?” he snapped, “I’m starting to think I should just leave you to the mummy guy so I can get some peace.”

“I  _beg_  your pardon?” Her cheeks were flushed pink with fury.

“I didn’t sign on to save the world, sweetheart, I signed on to repay you for saving my life and, you know what, I think I’ve done more than enough to cover my end of─”

“Leave, then.”

That silenced him.

“… What?”

“Leave, then,” she repeated, her arms crossing once more. “If you no longer want to stay then leave. I agree, you’ve gone above and beyond and I no longer require your services. This is my mess and I’m going to fix it.”

He stared at her.

She blinked, staring back at him as her shoulders relaxed a fraction. “… You’re not leaving.”

“No, I’m not.”

“Why?”

_That’s a damn good question._

“I don’t know.”

Unsure, Evy tried to cling to her rage. “You’re such an arrogant cad.”

“And you’re an insufferable broad.”

She tried to let his words fuel her anger, she really did, but… He was  _staying_. The dishevelled man who’d stolen a kiss, thrown her off a boat, locked her in this room and practically breathed sarcasm was staying, despite insisting he had no reason to do so. So why was he?

Then again, hadn’t he proven his true self countless times? He’d been true to his word and taken them to Hamunaptra. He’d ‘borrowed’ tools for her when she’d been left with nothing. He’d listened to her ramble about Ancient Egyptian life. He hadn’t taken advantage of her when she’d been drunk. Yes, he’d thrown her off the boat, but it had been to save her… As he’d locked her in this room to keep her safe. It was infuriating but it had come from the goodness of his heart… But  _why_? He could so easily have left long ago, and why was he  _still_  staying now, when everything was so incredibly bad?

“Why are you staying?” she asked again, her voice softer now as the anger seemed to have left him, too. Now, something else lingered in his gaze.

His mouth opened but no words came out. 

Then, he was cupping her jaw, lowering his head and capturing her lips. 

His touch may have been light, but he kissed her in the same, deliciously firm way as before, and she surrendered to it, gladly and willingly.

Releasing a soft sound against his lips, her hands settled on his chest and gripped at his shirt. Very gratefully taking her gestures as a sign of encouragement, Rick slid an arm around her lower back and held her close against him, softening the kiss by just a fraction as he allowed himself to just feel and think of her and nothing else.  

He shouldn’t be kissing her, that’s not what a good guy did, not what a guy who deserved her did. But she hadn’t hit him, hadn’t pushed him away, hadn’t yelled at him. He still couldn’t figure her out. She was all obstinate fire and passion one moment and eager to teach and listen the next. She challenged him at every available opportunity and it didn’t infuriate him nearly as much as it should have. He wasn’t just yearning to bed her and that be it; he wanted to listen to her ramble on about what the Pharaohs ate or wore, or whatever else she lit up about, for as long as he could, and when she smiled… Well, he couldn’t explain how he felt when she smiled, so he’d kissed her instead.

And he was still kissing her.

Time seemed to have fallen away and she was still pressed close against him, her lips moving languidly and sweetly against his. 

Finally, though, he broke the kiss, yet he didn’t want to move away from her, not just yet, so he gently placed his forehead against hers, and kept his eyes closed. He didn’t want to see the regret that was most likely surfacing in her eyes─

Her arms slid around his waist and gripped onto the back of his shirt lightly. She wasn’t moving away, and when he opened his eyes she was gazing at him, regret no where to be seen.

He opened his mouth, to say what he wasn’t quite sure, when loud, frantic knocking sounded on the door as someone tried to open it.

“Evy? Evy, are you in there? Have you seen O’Connell? It’s the Egyptologist fellow! The creature’s got him!”

Evy’s eyes widened at Jonathan’s words, and she looked up at Rick, his mouth set in a thin line.

The terrible reality of their situation took its firm, unwavering hold once more.

 

* * *

 


End file.
